“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” —Galatians 6:9
George Muller is a well-known Christian in stories of faith and prayer. Muller ran an orphanage in Bristol, England, where he cared for over ten thousand orphans throughout his life. Most noted are his prayers of provision. Many times Muller would wake up to an empty kitchen and barren cabinets. He would gather the children to the table and direct them in a prayer of thanks for the food God would provide. Numerous stories are told of the different ways God blessed their faith with food to eat.
While many stories are told of the immediate answers to Muller’s prayers, rarely mentioned is the one prayer he prayed for nearly his entire life. As a young man, Muller had five friends who were unsaved. After his conversion, Muller felt a burden for the salvation of his friends, so he began praying for his friends to accept Christ. After a few months, one of his friends accepted Christ’s salvation. Rejoicing in his friend’s decision, Muller felt an even greater burden to pray for the remaining four lost friends. Although he prayed each day for them, ten years elapsed before two more of his friends were saved. The next friend was not saved until twenty-five years later. Although four of his five friends were now saved, Muller never gave up on his last friend, praying for him for fifty-two years. Muller’s persistence was rewarded as the last friend finally accepted Christ at Muller’s funeral.
Muller never gave up on his friends. He pressed on daily. Even though he didn’t see an immediate answer and actually never saw the complete answer to his prayer, he continued to faithfully pray every day.
Muller exemplified Galatians 6:9 by never giving up hope that his prayers would be answered. Even so, if we desire to see prayers answered and right living blessed, we must press on. Daily we are given the opportunity to sow righteousness through making right choices and living godly lives. We are also given opportunities to sow unrighteousness through living for self. God promises that if we daily choose to live for Him, “In due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
Have you ever noticed that sometimes unrighteous living or wrong choices don’t seem to have immediate consequences? Sometimes people who follow the world seem to have an easier path, yet notice what God says in Psalm 37:1-3, “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.” Rather than becoming discouraged when others’ wrong actions seem to go unpunished, press on in daily sowing righteousness.
God encourages you to keep making right decisions and choosing to follow Him. Choosing right over wrong won’t always be easy. Sometimes following God will take great strength and courage, but God promises, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
Do you ever feel discouraged by the choices of others? Remember God’s encouragement to keep making right decisions despite the decisions of others. Even when doing right is tough, press on. Even when following God is unpopular, press on. Even when choosing righteousness doesn’t yield immediate blessings, press on. God promises that as you press on in choosing to follow Him daily, you will reap more blessings than those who follow their own path. As you are faced with decisions today, remember that your future depends on the choices you make today. Choose God’s path.(Daily in the Word)
